


You're telling ME not to hurt Cisco?

by ScilesMcCallinski



Category: The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Barry Allen & Iris West Friendship, Confused Cisco Ramon, Dante assumes Barry and Cisco are dating, M/M, Protective Barry Allen, it does not go well, that's all I'm saying, tries to give Barry the shovel talk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-01
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-16 23:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,086
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14175663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ScilesMcCallinski/pseuds/ScilesMcCallinski
Summary: Cisco and Dante have been working on their friendship and when Barry tags along with Cisco to his parents' house, Dante feels like it's time for him to be a good big brother and give Barry the shovel talk. With how touchy Barry and Cisco are, and the way Cisco talks about Barry when he's with Dante, how could they not be dating? But Cisco told Barry everything about Dante and how he treated him. So how could Barry possibly just stand there and listen to Dante tell him not to hurt Cisco when he's the one who's hurt him most?





	You're telling ME not to hurt Cisco?

"I still don't think it's a good idea for you to come in with me," Cisco says again.

He's been trying to convince Barry that he doesn't need to come with him, he can go see his parents and wish his cousin a happy birthday by himself. But Barry just isn't accepting that, using the excuse that he wants to spend more time with Cisco since they haven't had much time to just hangout lately. And he isn't technically lying, he does want to spend more time with him.

But him insisting to come with Cisco today is because he's heard about his family, how they talk to him, how they treat him, and he just wants to be there for him. He knows that Cisco and Dante are slowly making progress, meeting up every once in a while to catch up. But the thought of Cisco going alone into a room filled with his family still leaves Barry uneasy. Even if, as Cisco's been reminding him the entire time, it is just a five-minute visit - ten at most.

Cisco's been there for him countless times before, the least Barry can do is come with him to his cousin's 18th birthday party that Cisco's parents just happen to be having at their house. 

"Dude, it'll be fine," Barry assures him, hand on Cisco's shoulder and a smile on his lips. "I've gone up against a lot of people, including the men who killed my parents. I'm pretty sure I can handle a conversation with your family. Besides," he shrugs, "how bad can it really be?" 

"You have no idea," Cisco mutters and then moves forward, walking up the path to his house. 

Barry quickly follows after him and stands beside him as they wait for someone to answer the door. Of course, it just so happens to be Dante that appears, eyes widening with surprise even as he pulls the door all the way open and steps to the side, gesturing for them to come in. 

Cisco greets him with a grin, visibly relaxing a little as he steps into the house, clearly glad that it wasn't one of his parents that answered. Barry walks in after him, sending Dante a quick wave and a polite smile.

Even if Cisco and Dante are now on good terms, Barry isn't just going to forget the way Cisco's face fell every time he mentioned his brother or the way he tried to completely avoid the subject of Dante at all to hide how painful it was for him, being reminded of the way his big brother talks to him and treats him. Barry can't just forget how much pain Dante caused Cisco, even if it wasn't intentional. 

Cisco pats Barry's shoulder, stopping for a second to say, "I want you to stay here, okay? I'll be five minutes and then we're out." 

Barry rolls his eyes but nods in understanding, sending Cisco a reassuring smile. "I promise I'll stay here. Now go, I'll be fine." 

Cisco still seems uneasy about leaving Barry by himself, probably worrying that one of his many family members will try and start a conversation with him, or worse. But Barry sends him a pointed look and he very reluctantly joins the rest of his family in the living room, the sound of relaxed chatter and laughter drifting into the hallway. 

"So," Dante speaks up, startling Barry, who had momentarily been too focused on watching Cisco awkwardly hug his aunt and uncle to notice that he was still standing there. "You're Barry, right?" 

Barry nods, trying not to let his surprise show that Dante's even talking to him. "Yeah. Yeah, we, uh... I ran into you at Jitters a few weeks ago."

"Yeah," Dante nods, straightening up a little. "You were with Cisco and... your other friend, Caitlin."

"Yeah, I was."

They both go quiet, neither knowing what to say now and Barry's quickly beginning to wish he had listened to Cisco and at least stayed outside. But then he looks over at the crowd of people roaming casually through the giant living room, his eyes instinctively searching for Cisco. And then he spots him, getting sucked into a conversation with who Barry thinks is his mother while clearly forcing a smile.  

As if able to feel Barry's eyes on him, Cisco glances around, mouth moving as he responds to whatever his mother said to him. He meet's Barry's gaze and grins, bright and spreading across his face and Barry just melts. He grins back, leaning his shoulder against the doorframe beside him as he continues to watch Cisco, even after he turns away to finish his conversation. 

There's a sigh from beside him and Barry turns to face Dante, raising his eyebrows at him.  

"Look, I know Cisco and I are..." He pauses, glancing away as he seems to try and think of the right word. "Well, we're still working some things out." Barry wants to scoff at the understatement but chooses to stay quiet, not wanting to start an argument with him, for Cisco's sake only. "But he's still my brother and I care about him. I want what's best for him." 

Barry nods and gives a one-shouldered shrug, "I get that." He's not entirely sure how to respond or act considering he has no idea why Dante is all of a sudden telling him this. 

"Clearly, you make him happy, judging by how much he _gushes_ about you and you do make a pretty cute pair," Dante admits reluctantly. He doesn't seem to like the thought of that, his eyes hardening slightly as he presses on, missing the confused look Barry sends him. "I've never seen him like this before. Not in any of his past relationships. So, if you even dare do anything to hurt him-"

"Hold on just a second." Barry doesn't even care that Dante is implying that he and Cisco are dating, he doesn't bother to point out that they're not and they're just friends. He's more focused on the last part, slightly outraged that Dante thinks he has any right to talk about hurting Cisco. "You're telling _me_ not to hurt Cisco?"

Dante's composure completely shifts, any trace of politeness he had obviously been forcing for Cisco's sake disappearing as he stares at Barry with disdain and displeasure. "Excuse me?"

"Oh, don't act all innocent." Barry is trying to keep his voice low so that they don't attract the attention of anyone else but at the same time, he doesn't actually care if anyone hears him. "After everything you did to Cisco, you think you have the right to threaten me if I hurt him? Which, I would never do. Not intentionally. Because I care about him." 

Dante actually looks offended at Barry's accusation, enough so that he doesn't seem to care about keeping their argument quiet. "Are you trying to say that I don't care about my brother? You don't have any right to accuse me of anything. Just because you're dating him, doesn't mean you care more about him than I do. You've only known him for, what? Two years?" 

Barry scoffs and shakes his head, having to clench his hands and force himself to stay calm, the feeling of electricity tingling in his hands and a buzzing in his mind. 

"It doesn't matter how long I've known him. What matters is that I would never hurt him, not like you did." Dante opens his mouth to shoot back a furious response but Barry doesn't give him the chance. "You made him feel like a disappointment, like a failure. He felt like he was worthless because of you. All he wanted was for you to be his big brother, for you to care about him and actually want to be around him. But instead, you just broke him down even more. And that's the difference between us. I would never do anything as cruel to hurt someone I'm suppo-" 

"Uh, guys...?" Cisco's voice cuts through Barry's as he stands on the sidelines, eyes darting between them with confusion and concern. 

It doesn't have the effect he seemed to be expecting though, as neither Barry nor Dante turn to even glance at him. 

Dante takes a step forward, pointing a finger at Barry, who just looks at him as his eyebrows pull together and his forehead creases. "You have absolutely no right to say any of that. I know I made mistakes, I kno-" 

"Mistakes?" Barry repeats, an incredulous chuckle escaping his throat. "I wouldn't call completely destroying your brother's self-esteem and making him think you hate him a mistake. You chose to treat Cisco like that. It wasn't just something that happened accidentally." 

Barry watches as Dante clenches his jaw and drops his hand back to his side and Barry wonders if he's about to back down. "I admit that the way I treated him was wrong. I know that. But there's nothing I can do to change the past." Barry nearly blurts out that there's a way _he_ can change the past but quickly stops himself. Dante sighs, looking at Barry with that same, hard glint in his eyes as earlier, "But you. You hurt him too. You think that just because you're dating him, you'll get away with him making him feel bad."

" _What_?" Cisco once again cuts in, voice a little higher-pitched this time as his eyes widen and dart between Dante and Barry. He gestures at Barry, "... wait, but me and Barry aren't even dating-"

"I don't care what you think about me," Barry says to Dante, taking a step closer to him as he narrows his eyes at him and shrugs. "You can think whatever the hell you want about me. But do not accuse me of hurting Cisco on purpose because I would never do anything that I thought might hurt him. I care about him."

"So do I!" Dante shouts, catching the attention of more than a few of his family members. "You think I don't care about him? He's my brother, of course I do. But you just came in here, accusing me of all these things. If you really cared about him, you woul-"

"Alright, that's it!" Cisco yells, finally getting Barry and Dante to look at him. He meets his brother's eyes, seeing the anger quickly fade and turn to guilt. Cisco doesn't even bother saying anything to him, knowing it'll be best to call and talk to him later. But for right now, he turns to Barry, who wears an equally as guilty look with the addition of his anger still being evident. "Come on, Barry. We're leaving." 

There's no protesting, no arguing. Barry just nods and opens the door then walks out of the house. He knows he shouldn't have gotten as angry as he did and usually he wouldn't have, he'd have just stayed quiet because he's not one to start arguments.

But just hearing Dante's excuses, after everything that's happened, after all the time Cisco and Dante have spent together to try and mend things between them, he tries to act like what he did wasn't that big of a deal. Barry couldn't just stand there and listen to him warn Barry not to hurt Cisco, not after the amount of times Dante has been the one to hurt him. 

It doesn't take long for Cisco to join Barry outside, lingering inside for a few seconds to longer to say goodbye to Dante. When he reaches him, he doesn't say anything at first, just stands there staring at Barry. 

And Barry has to admit, it's making him a little uneasy. He'd honestly rather it if Cisco were shouting at him for causing a scene or getting into an argument with his brother while at his cousin's birthday party. But he doesn't. 

"I'm just curious," Cisco finally says after a few more seconds pass, eyebrows pulling together, and Barry's hands begin to twitch, the tingling from earlier only getting worse as the buzz of electricity builds up inside him due to his nerves. Barry tries to prepare himself for whatever Cisco's about to say, an apology already sitting on the tip of his tongue. "Why exactly does my brother think we're dating? And why didn't you correct him when he said it?"

Barry freezes, confused. And then he remembers why exactly he had even gotten into that argument with Dante, and what he said just before Barry cut him off. At that moment, Barry didn't even care what kind of relationship Dante thought he and Cisco had, he had been too angry.

"I, uh..." Barry has to think about what to say and Cisco raises his eyebrows as his lips curve into a grin, clearly suppressing a laugh. "I guess I just wasn't really paying attention?" It comes out as more of a question and he internally curses himself and his lack of an ability to not be awkward.

"Uh huh," Cisco says, nodding as his grin brightens. "But you were paying attention to everything else he said?"

Barry swallows and chuckles nervously, shrugging it off. "Yeah, I guess. I mean, you can tell him that we're not- y'know, that we're not together or anything. So he doesn't get the wrong idea. I mean, I know he's already got the wrong idea because we're _not_ dating but still you can just-" 

"Barry, slow down," Cisco cuts through his rambling and he feels a sort of relief wash over him, glad that he never got the chance to embarrass himself by saying something he didn't mean to.

Cisco's grin is still in place, eyes sparkling with something that Barry doesn't quite understand. He takes a step forward as he says, "I think I know why you didn't correct Dante about you being my boyfriend." Barry's eyebrows shoot up and his heart is racing in his chest. "There's about a 90% chance of me being right. Okay, maybe more like 80%. Possibly 45%. Although, this is going to be incredibly embarrassing if I am wrong so I'm kinda hoping I'm not." 

"What are you-" 

Barry doesn't even get to finish his sentence as Cisco moves forward, closing the gap between them. It takes a second - although it's probably even less because of him being a speedster - for him to fully realise what's happening, his eyes widening. And then he lets them close and he's leaning into the kiss, hands finding their way to the back of Cisco's neck and fingers tangling in his hair. It only lasts for a few more seconds before they both pull back, panting slightly and Barry can't help but just stare at Cisco. 

"What?" Cisco immediately asks, wary as he searches Barry's face. "Oh god, did I - did you not - I am so sorry." He goes to move away, clearly thinking he's overstepped or he's made Barry uncomfortable. 

Barry's eyes widen and he shakes his head frantically, shifting his hands to gently grab Cisco's arms. "No, no, no! I wanted to do that. I just... I wasn't expecting it."

Cisco doesn't look entirely convinced, his doubt lingering. Barry leans in once more, wanting to prove to Cisco that he really did want to kiss him. And what better way to do that other than pulling him into another kiss? 

Barry grins as his lips brush Cisco's and he lets his hands wander back to Cisco's hair. He has to tilt his head down to fully catch his lips in a proper kiss, and even then, Cisco has to stand on his toes to reach him. Barry can't help but find it incredibly adorable and _god_ does he wish they had done this sooner, instead of him just sitting around, pushing his feelings down. 

It's Cisco who pulls back, grinning brightly up at Barry with a glint in his eyes. "Does this mean you _like_ me?"

Barry rolls his eyes at the question that sounds like something a 10-year-old would ask, unable to stop grinning. "We should probably go," he says, completely avoiding the question and Cisco obviously knows the answer just based on Barry's reaction. "I mean, we're kinda still standing in front of your house and..." He gestures behind Cisco. 

Cisco's eyes narrow as he spins around and groans, immediately spotting Dante leaning in the doorway with his arms crossed and wearing a somewhat displeased and stony look. Despite this, he sends Cisco a small nod and a tight-lipped smile, at least pretending to tolerate his relationship with Barry - or friendship, whatever the hell it is - as he sees how happy he looks.

Deciding it's the best he's going to get for now, Cisco returns his nod and smile before turning away from him. Just one look at his face and Barry knows how much this is already affecting him, seeing the way his brother looks at Barry with such coldness and how he has to literally force himself to try and pretend he's happy for Cisco when it's obvious he's not. 

"Hey, let's head back to S.T.A.R. Labs," Barry suggests, moving his arm to wrap around Cisco's shoulder as he begins slowly pulling him away from his parents' house. "I bet that as soon as we get back, Caitlin's going to tell us that there's some criminal that we have to stop and help lock up. And you, Harry and Ralph are going to start bickering like you always do and then Harry's going to throw something across the room."

Cisco chuckles and agrees, "Yeah, and don't forget about Iris." 

"Oh I'm not, I know she's going to kill me."

Cisco raises his eyebrows at him. "Why exactly is she going to kill you?

"Because she's been telling me to tell you how I feel since I woke up from that coma," Barry chuckles. "I don't even know how she knew, but she somehow managed to figure out that I liked you. And she's been trying to convince me to let her play matchmaker ever since. She is definitely going to be mad that you found out on your own, which means she's going to blame me."

There's a pause and Barry looks over at Cisco, his silence worrying him. But Cisco's just gazing at him with this look in his eyes and Barry's eyebrows pull together as he opens his mouth to ask him if something's wrong but then Cisco just grins, and it's brighter and wider than it has been all day.

"I knew it!" He yells, sounding gleeful and triumphant and nearly making Barry jump ten feet in the air. He points a finger at a very confused Barry, "I knew you liked me back then. I just had this... vibe. And yes, I know, that's hilarious. But I was right! You did like me!" 

Barry chuckles and nods, "You're right. And I still do," he adds. Cisco doesn't seem to pick up on it, simply sending him a slightly confused look. "I still like you," he presses on. "I'm not sure if I didn't make it clear enough, and I sure thought I did by kissing you, but I still like you, Cisco. That hasn't changed." 

It's like a light bulb goes on somewhere inside Cisco's head as he stops walking and stares at Barry with wide eyes. Barry notices that Cisco is no longer beside him and turns around, confused, before catching on. Once again, he doesn't get to ask if something's wrong. 

"Wait..." Cisco says slowly, holding a hand up as he tries to process everything. "You still like me?" Barry nods, more than a little confused and fondly exasperated that Cisco is only just realising this, even after them kissing. "And I like you... Does this mean we _are_ dating or...?"

"Do you want us to be dating?" Barry asks curiously. He already knows what his own answer is. 

Cisco barely even thinks about it. "Yeah. But I mean, only if you want t-" 

Barry cuts him off as he leans in for the third time that day and presses a soft kiss to Cisco's lips and then pulls back, smiling down at him. "I definitely want to." 

Cisco's face practically lights up and Barry doesn't think he's ever seen something so adorable and yet kind of hot at the same time. Then he grins, a sort of mischievous flicker in his eyes. 

"Does this mean that I can tell Dante he's the one who got us together? Because, if you think about it, had he not just assumed that we were already dating, I'm pretty sure neither of us would have even thought about talking about it."

Barry bursts out laughing at just the thought of telling Dante that and imagining his face when he realises it was indeed entirely his fault.

"Maybe you shouldn't," he says with a grin. "I'd rather he didn't hate me any more than he already does. But definitely let him know we're together."

Cisco snorts. "Think he already got that from watching us make out outside my parents' house." 

Barry tries to protest, saying that they weren't making out. He doesn't get very far though as Cisco simply raises his eyebrows at him and Barry rolls his eyes but gives up. They begin walking again before Barry decides that it's too far and barely gives Cisco any warning before speeding them both away, stopping in the middle of the cortex in S.T.A.R. Labs. 

Surprisingly, Cisco isn't as dizzy as he usually is after Barry does that, although he does stumble a little and grabs Barry's arm for support. 

As Barry had predicted earlier, Caitlin was indeed waiting for them rather impatiently, wearing a look that told the both of them that she was in no mood to argue or listen to excuses. She quickly informs them that a new meta was running around the city half an hour ago, not doing much harm other than terrifying people by becoming their worst fears. Who knows how that meta even got powers like that. 

It isn't until later, when Barry's sitting with Iris in Joe's living room while he makes dinner, that she predictably shifts their conversation to her favourite thing to talk about with Barry. Cisco. He listens to her repeat what she always says about how he should just tell Cisco the truth and how they have such great chemistry together, growing more and more amused the longer she goes on. 

When Iris finally stops for a breath, Barry jumps in and tells her. He tells her about his argument with Dante, how he assumed that Barry and Cisco were dating. And the kisses. He definitely mentions the kissing. She just sits there, listening to him intently. And when he's finished filling her in, she still says nothing, which begins to make him a little nervous. 

And then she slaps his arm. Hard. 

"Ow! What was that for?" He asks her as he jerks his arm away from her, cradling it in his other one.

"That was for letting Cisco's brother set you two up! You knew that my life goal!" She says like it was obvious. 

"Hey, I didn't exactly want to get into an argument with Dante," Barry defends. "I would definitely have preferred you playing cupid instead of him. Although, it's not like he was actually intending to set us up, pretty sure he wanted the opposite."

Iris rolls her eyes but a grin spreads across her face. "Fine, fine. I accept your apology." Barry doesn't bother to point out that he didn't actually apologise, letting Iris have this moment. "But now you have to let me set up your first date. Promise me!" 

It's Barry's turn to roll his eyes but it's like her grin's contagious. "I promise you can set up my first date with Cisco," he agrees.

And it's only when the words are out of his mouth that he realises how happy he is to actually be able to say that. He's going to have a first date with Cisco. They're actually together. Not once in the four years that they've known each other and Barry has been pining - as Iris so dramatically puts it - over Cisco did he ever expect it to actually go somewhere. But now that it has, he doesn't think he's ever been happier about anything else in his entire life. It's just weird to think that he partially has Dante to thank for that.


End file.
